VIRENCHI MAHATHA Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The instant Criminal Appeal is directed against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence recorded by Shri R.K. Srivastava, Additional Sessions Judge, F.T.C.-III, Bokaro in Sessions Trial No. 143 of 1996 by which the Appellants were convicted under Sections 324 and 148 of the Indian Penal Code. Each of the Appellants was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a term of two years on each count with the direction that both the sentences would run concurrently.

(2.) The prosecution story in short was that the informant Bhaglukesh Mahatha presented a written report before Chandankiyari Police Station on 14.12.1995 alleging, inter alia, that on the same day at about 1 O'clock he had been to paddy fields appertaining to Khata No. 8, Plot No. 3305. Plots 3306 and 3310 to watch the crops but all on a sudden it was alleged that all the Appellants variously armed with sticks and knife arrived and began to abuse him. It is further alleged that in the same transaction the Appellant Natwar Mahatha @ Latan Mahatha dealt Lathi blows on his legs whereas the Appellant Virenchi Mahatha stabbed "Chhura" on his right arm causing bleeding injuries and it was the Appellant Sanjay Mahatha, who caused injury on his left ear. The assault was made to the informant in prosecution of their common object and the Appellants escaped on the arrival of the inmates of the house of Ram Prasad Mahatha, who arrived at the scene on hearing alarm. On the basis of the written report Chandankiyari P.S. Case No. 116 of 1995 was instituted against the Appellants for the alleged offence under Sections 147/148/342/324/323 & 307 of the Indian Penal Code. After investigation the charge-sheet was submitted in the said Sections but the charge was framed against the Appellants only under Sections 148/307 of the Indian Penal Code. The defence of the Appellant was that the paddy fields in question belonged to them and the informant tried to harvest the paddy from their land stealthily to which the Appellants opposed and resisted giving rise to a counter-case against the informant of the instant case and the Appellant Virenchi Mahatha of this appeal was the informant in the counter-case.

(3.) The prosecution had examined only two witnesses and amongst them P.W. 1 Nitu Mahatha @ Nitai Mahatha was the son of the informant of the instant case and P.W. 2 was the informant himself. Besides the defence produced the sole witness Santosh Kumar, who was formal in nature, simply proved the rent receipt of the land which was marked Ext. A. Besides, the prosecution proved the signature of the informant on the written report Ext. 1 whereas Ext. A was the rent receipt, Ext. B the record of right (Khatian), Ext. C was the entire record of right, Ext. D being the F.I.R. of counter-case dated 14.12.1995, Ext. E being the charge-sheet of the counter-case and Ext. F was the certified copy of the order-sheets containing the orders dated 15.12.1995, 16.12.1995 and 25.07.2002 of the counter case proved on behalf of the defence. P.W. 1 Nitu Mahatha @ Nitai Mahatha testified that the occurrence took place on 14.12.1995 at about 1 O' clock while he was there in the adjacent field. His father had been there to the field and at that time when all the accused started beating his father, he went there on hearing "Hulla". His father first went to Police Station after sustaining injuries and from there to Hospital. His statement was also recorded by the Police. In the cross-examination, the witness admitted that at the relevant time he was standing in his own field which was adjacent to the place of occurrence. On demand he narrated the boundary of the field where he was standing and he also narrated the plot number of the field which was the place of occurrence. The place of occurrence was situated at the distance of 200 yards from the place where he was standing and it took 3/4 minutes to cover the distance. He had spotted blood at the spot but it was not shown to the police. He was apprized by his father that Virenchi Mahatha had assaulted him with knife, Natwar Mahatha @ Latan Mahatha assaulted with sticks on his legs and it was Sanjay Kumar Mahatha, who caused injury on his ear by pelting stone. The remaining accused had assaulted him with fists and kicks. He admitted that none else except him and his uncle arrived there at the place of occurrence. The witness further admitted that the accused of the case Virenchi Mahatha had instituted a case giving rise to Chandankiyari P.S. Case No. 115 of 1995 for the offence under Section 379/34 of the Indian Penal Code against him, his father and uncle and in that connection all the three were arrested and remanded to judicial custody. He expressed his ignorance as to which out of the two cases was instituted first point in time. The witness admitted that the case instituted by Viranchi was still going on against him and others in the Court of Judicial Magistrate which was at the stage of evidence.